Unavoidable
by justsayraura
Summary: After a fight that ended their entire partnership, Austin and Ally have headed in different directions in their lives. Both twenty-two and living in the city, the wedding of one of their best friends leads them to meet again. After three years, have they forgiven each other? Will they remember every thing they went through together or continue to avoid each other? Rated T for lang.
1. New Lives & Old Love

**I fell asleep last night to the heartbeats in my head**

**I fell apart when I got home inside my bed**

_Dear Author,_

_Thank you for your submission of work to our agency. Unfortunately, we can only take on very few new clients at this time and as a result we cannot currently consider your project. We understand this may come as a disappointment, and we regret that we cannot reply individually to your query, due to the large number of submissions we have received recently._

_Sincerely yours,_

_Janice Greene, Literary Agent._

A deep sigh escaping her lips, Ally Dawson screwed up the piece of paper and added it to the pile of other rejection letters building up in her wastepaper bin. This was the third one this month, and the hope inside of her was beginning to melt away with every word.

She was never the sort of girl to just give up. Her parents always described her as a fighter who would `never stop until she got it her way'. Although this had been years ago, when she was just a kid, and things were easier. In fourth grade, when the class hamster had gone missing, Ally had carried on searching the halls of her elementary school for three and a half hours after the last school bell rang, when all the other kids had gone home. But she found it. And then in her first year of high school, she led the debate team to victory, as they won the regional championships for the first time in eight years of the school's history. In junior year when Dez had wanted to bump his science grade up, Ally had tutored him for hours on end in her own time, helping him to score the A he deserved, which he did. And then there was her own grades, reading club, her charity work, her music.

Her music.

The one thing she had given up on. The one thing that held the upper most importance to her, yet she had just dropped in the blink of an eye. She hadn't written a song in over three years, after having decided at age eighteen that she would become an author, writing romance novels or children books. She needed a way to channel the passion and excitement she had put into writing music into something else. She went to college to pursue this and after a year of getting rejected over and over again by agents, she was beginning to realise that she didn't really feel passionate or excited about writing books. There was no melody to describe raw emotion, no rhythm speaking to her soul. She knew it was cheesy, but music had just been something she would always understand.

She had turned twenty-two years old in May of this year, and she lived in an apartment in central Miami with Trish De La Rosa, her best friend since kindergarten. Although as of August she would be living alone, as Trish was going to be moving in with her husband, who she is due to marry in two days, on the fourth of July. Ally may have thought about how nervous she was about living alone, if she wasn't so busy with the planning of her best girlfriend's wedding. She was the maid of honour, and had got virtually everything sorted, (because she's Ally Dawson and when is she ever unorganised?) with the only tasks left being checking up on the band booking and going over the 'attending' list. After pushing the worries about her rejection letter out of her head, she proceeded to look over the booking of the band she hired. Trish had originally asked Ally to sing as the band, and Ally had told her that she would love to but she wouldn't have enough time around organising everything else. Unbeknownst to Trish, that wasn't the actual reason. Because the last time Ally had performed, she had been singing next to Austin Moon.

The same Austin who had been her best friend all the way through high school, the same one who had been there for her every time she needed him, from when she was upset to when she was frightened to when she just wanted to talk. The same boy she had gone through everything with. The two of them had countless happy memories; watching the stars, talking on the phone until the early hours of the morning about stupid stuff to heartfelt secrets, breaking the rules (which was huge for Ally), and playing piano together. The same sweet, blonde teenager that she had danced at her prom with, written music with, laughed with until her sides hurt…

And fallen in love with.

They were the couple that everyone wanted to be together. It seemed every single one of their friends knew it was happening before Austin and Ally knew themselves. When Austin finally built up the courage to tell Ally how he felt, she had kissed him right then and there, which he had immediately returned.

"You have no idea how long I've been waiting for you to do that." He had remarked sarcastically, causing her to giggle softly.

"You have no idea how long _I've _been waiting for you to tell me that." She had whispered back before he crashed his lips onto hers again because he could do that now, they had finally happened.

Their relationship was just like their friendship had been, except now they were a little closer in the way that they held hands walking along the corridor at school, and the way Austin would hug her from behind and whisper in her ear, or the way their hugs would linger just a little bit longer. Austin would climb up to her window in the middle of the night and they would talk and cuddle and laugh in her room for hours before he left quietly at dawn. And of course the kissing and the I love yous…which came shortly after their relationship began because they just _knew_.

It all felt like a real life movie to Ally, because she never thought she would find someone so perfect and amazing and _right _for her. As if Austin had just walked into her life straight out of a romantic film.

And then came Austin's first national tour and Ally couldn't go because she had to focus on her music. They both cried but they knew it was for the best because she believed in him and he was so proud of her. He spent a fortune on a 'ticket to anywhere' for her, so she could visit him on tour wherever he was because he needed to see her sometime during the agony of three months without her. Throughout his three years in the music business, he had never played a show before without her shouting support and sending him reassuring smiles from the side of the stage. She had kissed his teary face goodbye and tried not to think about him too much during the time he was gone, focusing on her album and the store that her dad owned, Sonic Boom. She needed some kind of distraction to keep her from feeling this emptiness in her stomach, as if she was missing her other half.

When Austin came back from tour, things were different. They had kept in contact less as the three months had progressed, only sending each other good luck texts by the last few days. Austin found out Ally had started to hang out a little more with Dallas while he was away, who had 'conveniently' starting working in the mall again. He instantly got jealous, which caused their first argument in over six months. Arguing became more of a normality as the weeks went on, in which they began to fight more over guys or girls, over their other friends, and even over their music.

Their music was something they had never argued about before, because their partnership was a match made in heaven when it came to writing music. As they began to reject each other's ideas, they started fighting more and more. They would argue about things not even worth arguing over, because that's what they _did _now. Before they knew it they weren't dating anymore, they had finished high school and they had got into their last ever fight, in which they had decided they should no longer write music together because, to put it in his words "Obviously, this isn't working." (He had meant it about the song they were writing, but she knew what he had really meant.) The fight lasted for almost seven hours (they were pulling an all nighter for the song they were writing) and there was a lot of crying and shouting and kissing and yelling and sobbing from the both of them.

"Obviously, this isn't working Ally."

She didn't answer him, still trying desperately at the piano keys for a melody they could agree on.

"Ally…maybe we should just take a break alright?" He asked, frustration evident in his voice. Ally snapped.

"Take a break from what, Austin?! Take a break from writing or take a break from us?" She yelled at him.

"Well, seeing as you suggested it I think that's a pretty good idea!" He retorted quickly.

"Fine! Let's take a break then!" She shouted, trying to hide her tears. They just stood there angrily glaring at each other until Austin couldn't keep his tears back anymore and they started running down his face which ultimately triggered Ally to start crying too.

"So are we….breaking up?" His voice breaking on the word breaking. She just gave him a look that said 'I don't even know who you are anymore'.

"I think you should leave Austin." She said quietly, holding back a sob and avoiding his eyes. It was 5am and he said nothing. Neither did she, so he left. He walked out, not knowing that would be the last time the two teenagers would ever write a song together, or the last time he would properly see her in three years. He left, not knowing that would become the moment their friendship ended.

And then they went to different schools for college, where she studied English and he studied Business and they just suddenly and completely lost contact for three years. She kept in contact with Trish and him with Dez, but they never once saw each other. It was heartbreaking for the both of them, but they convinced themselves they were still mad at each other to help them through it. But throughout their entire time at college, they just couldn't bring themselves to commit to any other relationship. Because they both knew that neither of them had really fallen out of love.

Not even a little bit.

Not even at all.

* * *

As an alternative, Ally had miraculously managed to book the Neon Trees to play at Trish's wedding. She still had a few contacts from when she was in the music business, and she knew how much Trish loved them so she was planning it as a surprise for her. Thinking of the Neon Trees made her instantly think about Austin, which she found herself doing a lot lately, since she started planning the wedding. The song Unavoidable had sort of been…their song. She had been listening to it on repeat for the past week because she somehow just couldn't get him out of her head.

Shaking the thoughts out of her mind she picked up the guest list and skim read the names. Trish's family, Jace's family, all of Trish's and Jace's friends from college…and then all of their friends from high school…Dez, Carrie, Kira, Brooke, Dallas, Elliot and Austin. She took a double take.

Austin.

Her heart skipped a beat. Obviously she knew he was coming, of course he was. But it seemed to only just register at that moment because she had realized she'd be seeing him in less than two days. Her first love. Her best friend. Her…soul mate. The only person she had held a grudge to for three years straight. She was dreading it.

And it was unavoidable.

* * *

Austin flopped onto his bed in his shared apartment with Dez. It had been a long day at work. He worked part-time with an office in the city, and he had never thought he would be doing something so boring. Filing letters, making phone calls to other companies, producing coffee for those higher than himself. After what could be classed as a muffled scream into his bed covers, he forced himself up and walked towards the kitchen where Dez was talking on the phone. He heard a certain name mentioned and froze on the spot.

"Are you excited?" Dez was asking the person on the receiving end. He laughed. "Awesome, I'm so happy for you. Have you given Ally a break yet? I guess she's been going overboard with the organisation."

Ally.

Ally, Ally, Ally. Her name kept circling in his head. Honestly, he hadn't stopped thinking about her since he received the invitation to Trish's wedding. The last time he ever saw her kept replaying in his mind, when they had broken up and lost contact for three years. He still missed her, even though he had cut her off and told himself he didn't love her, and he that he was still mad at her. It had all happened so fast to him; before he knew it they weren't talking anymore and he had thought it was for the best. Austin had completely given up music as soon as his relationship with Ally ended because there was no way he could make it without her. Every time he tried he would just end up feeling angry, remembering how they used to argue. He wondered whether she had carried on without him because, as much as he didn't want to admit it, she was amazingly talented by herself anyway. He had tried to forget her, tried to move on, tried to fall in love with somebody else. But he had realized he had to fall out of love with Ally in order to do that, which unfortunately he knew he had never done. Dez had asked him if he was sure he wanted to go to the wedding, because of Ally. Austin had said he had to see Trish get married. He wondered if Ally had missed him too. He wondered if she still hated him. It was going to be difficult seeing his best friend. His first love that he had just cut off for three years (technically, they had cut off each other). He wondered if she had fallen out of love with him. And he was scared that his feelings for her would come rushing back as soon as he saw her, because that was the _last _thing he wanted. He aimed to avoid her for the day, seeing as then his feelings wouldn't have a chance.

"Alright Trish de la Loser, Austin and I will see you tomorrow then. When you're walking down the aisle!" Dez laughed, and then after a few seconds said his goodbye and hung up the phone.

Tomorrow. Austin felt a stab of nerves to his chest. He was seeing her tomorrow.

His other half.

* * *

**So here I am with a new story!(whoa, a multi-chapter? Rachael are you serious?) The wedding is coming next! I am going to try to update this story every Sunday. But maybe after I've finished my exams... (which start tomorrow...oops) I will do my best to update during those though. Please review so that I know whether you guys are enjoying it, and give me some criticism too, anything that will help the story!**


	2. Weddings & Realisations

**I can't think, can't speak**

**I can't move, can't breathe**

**This is a white heart heat when you get next to me**

She woke up to a scream, coming primarily from her best friend, but also partly from the phone Trish was holding.

"I'M GETTING MARRIED TODAY!" Having ran into her room at the speed of light, Trish was leaning over Ally's bed, trying her best to jerk her friend into the new day.

"Aaaaallllyyy get out of bed!" Trish excitedly ordered her roommate, having stopped jolting Ally's shoulders after seeing her eyes flash open rapidly. "Carrie's on the phone, she'll be here in twenty, so get dressed!" She added, her tone dropping down to whisper-shouting. Putting the phone back up to her ear, Trish sauntered out of the room chatting animatedly into the receiver her exact plans for the day.

Ally yawned and closed her eyes again, turning over to get more sleep. She couldn't understand why Trish was up so early, that must have been the first time in ten years that she's been up before ten am. After lying there staring at the ceiling for a few seconds, her brain clocked it. The wedding. She suddenly remembered, shooting out of bed and straight into her bathroom. She still had so much to do! She had to do Trish's hair, make sure the bridesmaids were ready and fit into their dresses, double check on the catering team, etcetera. Panic started to set in so she stopped in her tracks and took a deep breath. Calm down Ally, everything is basically sorted, she thought to herself. Ally always had a tendency to panic even if she was as prepared as she possibly could be. Looking at herself in the mirror, she sighed.

She was so, so, so happy for her best friend, but she had spent the entire night thinking about what would happen when Trish moved out. Living on her own was never anything she had ever had to worry about. As soon as they graduated college she and Trish had moved in together and it had been the same since. Ally wondered if she would find a new roommate, or just try it on her own for a bit. It might be nice to have some peace. The real thing she was frightened of was becoming lonely, because losing Trish left her with only one close friend, and that was her mom. After high school the only one of her circle of friends she had stayed close to was Trish. Even though she had stayed in contact with Dez, Carrie and Kira, they had still grown apart a little. The other three; Austin, Dallas and Brooke, she had totally lost contact with. Austin for obvious reasons, Dallas because it had become a little awkward between them after her and Austin's fight and Brooke just because they were never as close as she had been with everyone else. She couldn't shake the thought that she would be seeing them all in just a few hours. Especially one of them.

After showering and brushing her teeth, Ally dressed into a pair of sweatpants and a loose top and proceeded towards the lounge-kitchen of their apartment. Trish was sitting at the table sorting through all of her makeup, no longer on the phone. Briefly looking towards Ally and then back down to her makeup, Trish gestured for Ally to help her pick the right stuff out. They had to be at the hotel in two hours and they hadn't even started. The wedding ceremony was actually going to be on the beach, and then everyone was going to go back to a nice hotel for the reception, in which some were going to spend the night before leaving after a pre-honeymoon breakfast in the morning.

The doorbell rang and there was Carrie waiting in anticipation. Ally answered and they hugged excitedly, since they hadn't seen each other in at least six months. Trish then sat there for almost an hour and a half letting Ally style her hair and Carrie do her makeup. After Trish was done and in her wedding dress, Ally and Carrie then sorted themselves out and the three girls got into the limo Jace had hired to take them to the hotel pre-ceremony. Ally had chosen to leave her hair in their natural curls, but plaited the front around to the back of her head and clipped in little flowers to match the bunch she would be holding. Carrie told her she looked flawless, which triggered Ally's signature 'thank you but I'm sure that's not true' modest blush.

* * *

"You're not getting cold feet are you?" Ally questioned Trish as they sat waiting for the guests to arrive and take their seats on the beach. The ceremony was all set up and the band (not the neon trees yet, but the ceremonial band) was playing softly as the guests arrived. All the bridesmaids and groomsmen were waiting in the beach hut, after which they would be walking down the aisle before Trish and her father. Jace was waiting on the beach. Trish's bridesmaids were Ally; the maid of honour, Carrie, Kira and Camilla, who was one of Trish's best friends from college. They were each paired up with one of Jace's groomsmen to walk down the aisle with. Ally had been paired up with Jace's best man and after meeting him she couldn't help feeling like she was the luckiest of all the bridesmaids. He was definitely her definition of hot.

"No, no. I'm totally fine. A little nervous about my vows but for the most part I'm just excited." Trish told her best friend with a smile that could reach all the way to Alaska.

"I'm so happy for you Trish De La Rosa." Ally said with a genuine look present in her eyes. "Or soon to be Trish De La Stewart…" She added.

"Just Trish Stewart thank you very much." Trish corrected. Even though she loved her heritage, Trish had never been keen on her last name.

"Patricia Stewart. What a dull name." Ally said sarcastically, smiling mischievously at her bridal friend. Trish burst out laughing.

"More than Allyson Dawson?!" She said through her giggles. Ally gave her shove and rolled her eyes before standing up, she could hear the music. The time had come. Ally took hold of Trish's hands and gave her a kiss on the cheek, wishing her all the luck in the world. She then looked over her shoulder and saw her guy waiting for her. Walking over, she sent him a smile and slid her arm into his.

"Ready?" He asked her. He had this messy blonde hair that reminded her way too much of the one person she was trying not to think about. Maybe it was the groomsmen's hair, the setting of the wedding or just because she had been trying to keep him out of her mind, but at that moment Austin's face flashed into her head and no matter how hard she tried she couldn't get it out.

"Of course." She said, her heart beating a mile a minute and sweat forming on her palms. And it wasn't from the heat.

Walking down the aisle, Ally tried her absolute hardest not to look at the guests. She looked straight ahead of her and kept a smile across her face. For a minute she hoped he had decided not to come, or fallen ill and had to miss it. She tried to think about Trish and Jace, and the wedding, and anything but Austin, but her mind just kept going back to him. She couldn't work out whether she wanted to see him or not.

She looked just as beautiful as the last time he had seen her. More beautiful, if that was physically possible. Austin was sitting on the second row of the chairs set out on the beach and he was watching the bridesmaids and groomsmen walk down the aisle before Trish came out. Beforehand his heart had been beating uncontrollably in anticipation of Ally. As soon as he set eyes on her he had tried to look away but with some people, it was just impossible. Ally was definitely one of those people. He felt butterflies all over again and it was just like it had been when they first fell in love. All their memories came rushing back to him and played over and over in his mind. He knew he missed her. There wasn't any point in denying it. She looked much the same aside from minor differences, like the fact she had darker hair and her breasts looked slightly larger. (He felt guilty for noticing this but he really couldn't help it.) She was looking straight ahead and smiling, not the same smile that made him fall for her harder than ever, but a more forced one. He couldn't believe he could still tell the difference.

As Ally reached the end of the aisle and parted from the groomsman, she turned and faced the guests. Instantly she noticed one guest looking her way. Austin. Tears immediately formed in her eyes and she cursed herself in her head. Not here, Ally, not here. It was too hard for her, everything was rushing back and she only then realised how much she had missed him. They made eye contact for just one second before he looked away. Well, not so much away, as down to his lap. She continued to stare at him. His hair looked exactly the same, but he had become more muscular, more like a man instead of a teenager. His face was still as soft as a fifteen year old boy, though. She always loved that about him.

Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed Trish starting to walk down the aisle, and she forced herself to tear her eyes away from Austin and towards her friend, who somehow looked more beautiful in her wedding dress than she had before, Ally had to admit. The rest of the ceremony went by smoothly; the vows, the ring exchange and the kiss, finished by an "I'M MARRIED LOSERS!" from Trish and a laugh from her partner, Jace.

After the newly married couple had walked down the aisle again together, everyone else began to disperse out. Ally saw Austin quickly get up from his seat and walk out without Dez, who had come over to talk to Carrie. Her heart dropped to her stomach. She didn't know if she had expected him to wait for her or something, she was unsure of what she had wanted to happen. It was as if they were teenagers all over again. She was still mad at him.

Austin had to get out of there as fast as he could. He knew if he talked to Ally, there would be a pretty large chance he would fall in love with her all over again. Did he want that to happen? He couldn't work out any of his feelings. Ally was probably in a pretty serious relationship. Hell, for all he knows she could be engaged or something. They hadn't talked in almost three years. He convinced himself that of course he didn't have a chance. Trying to figure out if it was even possible to just be friends with her, he walked towards his car and waited for Dez so they could drive to the reception. Man, this was going to be a long night.

* * *

For dinner, Ally was on the _VIP_ table, being the maid of honour and all. It consisted of Trish and Jace, both sets of their parents, the best man and Ally. She was seated next to the best man, who endlessly chatted to her all the way through dinner. Jake, as she found out his name was, told her he was engaged to his high school sweetheart and they were getting married in December. Ally looked at her high school sweetheart, who was the other side of the room, and for a moment couldn't help but wonder what could have been. Shaking thoughts of Austin out of her head she whipped a smile on her face and cheered while the famous couple cut their cake and made toasts. After Jake's toast, which consisted of a funny story about Jace in his teenage years, Trish signalled to Ally to make hers. A flow of panic rushed through her and she stood up shakily. Ally had practiced the toast at least a thousand times but now….her mind went blank. She hadn't experienced stage fright since before she and Austin sang _You Can Come to Me _yet now she was trembling more than she had the first time she rode a rollercoaster. Austin had held her hand and told her he was there for her and….wait. Everyone in the room was staring at her, and she was just stood there with her mouth open. She took a deep breath.

"Um, hi. Hi everybody, I'm, er, my name is…is Ally. Yeah, yeah…Ally." She let out a nervous laugh, and desperately tried to remember her speech. "Um…I remember when Trish, er, when Trish and I were, um. Okay. I remember when Trish and I were in junior year and, uh, she told me that, um, that she really liked this guy who…who…." Ally's voice began to shake and she was almost at cracking point. It was because she hadn't had to publicly speak in a while, she guessed.

Austin couldn't take it anymore. He thought back to the time when Ally had tried to perform the butterfly song and remembered the feeling of protectiveness he had felt over her to not let her struggle and embarrass herself. He knew the story she was starting. Here goes.

"Yes! Trish told us, uh, Ally and I… that she was totally infatuated with this guy she met on vacation. Now, naturally, I told her she had to be careful. I mean, I think we all know how long distance relationships can end. I can tell you from experience, one of my ex-girlfriends lived at one end of the street, I lived at the other….argh, and it was hard. It really was." He received a laugh from his audience. Ally couldn't think of what to say, or even how to react. He was…totally saving her. "So we find out this 'Jace' guy" (cue dramatic pause and a laugh from audience) "lived all the way in Colorado! I mean, what, like a billion and thirty miles away? Now of course, Ally said to Trish," Austin put on a high pitched voice, "Go for it Trish! Distance can never fault the act of love! Follow the path your heart sets out for you!" He had the audience laughing their heads off. "Because as a lot of people know here, Ally loves...love." He looked at her and paused for a moment. "When we first met Jace, it was through a laptop screen. Trish found him extremely attractive, I thought maybe it was because he was pixelated, but Trish didn't seem to mind." He chuckled and signalled an 'I'm just kidding' towards Jace. "We first met Mr. Hot Stuff in real life, as Trish secretly nicknamed him, three weeks into their relationship. The thing I noticed most about the two of them was that they…._bickered._ They squabbled like an old married couple and it was...perfect. Now we can all probably admit that Trish is a very loud person. She is very strong in her opinions, and I admire that. Something I admire even more is that Jace is the only person who can-"

Ally then interrupted him, her confidence back again. "Who can get Trish to view things another way. Whether it's politics or which sandwich to eat at lunch, he is the only person that can open her eyes to other opinions. Not even I can. And I think that's beautiful. Trish always told me she was never going to get married. She was always very independent and said she 'didn't need a man'. When she met Jace I think she realised, you don't have to need someone, to want them. They are each stunning people by themselves, but when they're together...it's like a perfect storm." She finished for him. He sent her a look that said 'exactly'.

"Although I will add that Trish puts up a pretty good fight!" She received a laugh from the guests and a whoop from Trish. Then they were both clapped and Ally sat down, a smile on her face. After a couple of other toasts from Dez, and Jace's brother, the dinner was cleared away and Trish announced it was time to dance. They had their husband and wife dance first and then the floor was open for others to join. The Neon Trees came out and everyone was astonished, especially Trish who hugged Ally at least twenty times and screamed in excitement. A few songs in Ally immediately scanned the room for Austin. He had been a complete sweetheart to save her like that and she hadn't had time to thank him yet. Spotting him, dancing with some girl she didn't recognise, she made her way over and cleared her throat. He looked at her and coughed. "Sorry, this'll just take a second." He muttered to the girl and turned to face Ally with a questioning look on his face.

"Um….right sorry. I just wanted to thank you for what you did back there. It was really sweet of you." He didn't say anything so she carried on. What do you even say to your first love that you haven't seen in almost three years? "So…yeah. Thanks, I guess." She added awkwardly.

"It's cool." He said quickly, smiling slightly. Then he looked to the floor awkwardly and said "See you around, then." after which he turned back to the girl and carried on dancing with her, cutting Ally out. Her mouth dropped open slightly and she uncomfortably stepped back and walked away, not knowing what else to do. She thought he had felt more than that. She was probably just being delusional. It clocked to her that the girl was probably his date, or even his girlfriend. They hadn't seen each other in years and she thought they still had a spark? How could she be so stupid. He had probably had multiple girlfriends since high school. But to be so blunt to her was rude. She didn't even know what she was feeling. Overwhelmed, she sat down on a bench outside the reception room, and sighed. She was surprised she hadn't seen it coming.

"You okay?" She heard a familiar voice above her and looked up. Dallas. She hadn't talked to Dallas in god knows how long. Since she broke up with Austin and she needed a shoulder to cry on. She smiled at him and made room on the bench so he could sit down, which he did. "Your toast was beautiful by the way." He started. Ally scoffed and looked at him as if to say 'don't even go there'.

"Thanks to Austin." She corrected. He slid his arm around her. "He was sweet, but the end was the best part. I promise." He said, in the most sincere way she had ever seen him talk to her. Her eyebrows raised and she mouthed a silent thank you before resting her head on his shoulder. He reacted by relaxing his head on top of hers. "I know it's weird seeing him again but don't worry about it, okay Ally? Do what makes you happy."

"You know what's weird? Seeing you again." She said into his shoulder before raising her head. "Why did we never stay in touch?"

"I guess we got busy with college." He answered. Ally had never really seen Dallas as a potential boyfriend. It had always been Austin. But she did wonder why they never stayed friends after he helped her through the breakup. They drifted apart after going to different colleges. She always felt like Dallas always had a tiny bit of a crush on her, but she tried her best to avoid it because of Austin. She noticed Dallas' appearance had changed quite a lot. His hair was a lot shorter and his face more matured. He was also taller and his voice sounded like he was older. When Ally didn't say anything, Dallas changed the subject. "Do you want to dance?" He asked, somewhat nervously, as if they were sixteen all over again. She smiled brightly.

"Of course." She replied. Leading her back into the reception hall, Dallas slid his arm around her waist and took her hand, and she placed her other hand on his shoulder. Conveniently, the Neon Trees were playing _Close To You_. Closing her eyes, Ally leaned her head in and rested it against his, and he pulled her closer to him. As they turned, Ally opened her eyes and saw Austin, still with the girl, staring her way with an unreadable expression on his face. He almost looked upset. She looked back at him with a glare and moved both of her arms to slide around Dallas' neck. Dallas moved his then free hand down to her waist. Austin tore his eyes away and whispered something to the girl. She nodded and Austin walked away to get a drink, looking back over his shoulder towards Ally and Dallas again.

Let her, he thought to himself. Let her go and flirt with Dallas. It's not like he still liked her anyway. It's not like he was still in love with every part of her, and wanted so badly to get back together. He thought when he had saved her toast, they had felt something again, after almost three years. But he couldn't bring himself to admit that he was still in love with her, because their relationship had been so broken and they had just fought and fought. The only way to move on was to try and avoid her, dance with another girl even. But when he saw her with Dallas, he couldn't help but feel insanely jealous. Dancing with a different girl did nothing to stop that. Austin just needed to get away from her, she made him feel confused and he didn't know what to do. He wanted her back so badly, but what if it didn't work out again? What if it destroyed their friendship again? What if she was…happier with Dallas? He couldn't take that happiness away from her by confusing her with his feelings. Just let her be with him, Austin thought. It was the only mature thing to do. He had missed his own chance.

The song ended and after a few seconds the next one began. It was…oh no. Ally's heart started to beat uncontrollably and she wanted to be anywhere but in Dallas' arms. She couldn't help but want to be in Austin's. They were playing Unavoidable.

"Sorry, could I just…uh, take a break for a sec?" She pulled away and asked Dallas. He nodded and she stepped away from him, making her way outside. As she was approaching the door, she felt a hand grab her arm. She turned and saw Austin standing in front of her. Fuck it, he wasn't mature, he thought.

"What?" she demanded coldly.

"Dallas? Are you serious?" he snapped at her.

"What about him?"

"You know what. All of our history and you just come here and flaunt him right in my face? You know how I felt about him."

"Yes, Austin, I know how you felt about him _three years _ago. When we were…together. Who are you to decide who I dance with?" She returned angrily.

"Look, I know this is immature, I know, but I can't help feeling jealous seeing you with the one guy who we fought over most!"

"Cut the crap, Austin. What about your girlfriend?" She said, tears forming in her eyes. His eyebrows scrunched together.

"What girlfriend? Ally I haven't had a fucking girlfriend since we broke up three years ago!" His voice raising by the word.

"Can we not do this here?" She said cautiously, looking around. He sighed exasperatedly and took her hand, taking her up some stairs leading to what they found out was the roof. She shook her hand out of his grip and whipped around to face him.

"This is ridiculous, Austin. You can't….you can't do this!" She started shakily, the tears beginning to fall.

"Can't do what?" He said in a softer tone.

"You can't just…not talk to me for three years and then show up here and say I can't dance with a guy because you're…jealous!? No, that is…that is…I..." She trailed off frustratedly.

"Are you serious? I didn't talk to you for three years? What about you?! You never once tried to contact me after our fight! I thought you hated me for god's sake!"

"You thought I hated you? You broke up with me!" She shouted at him with a sob.

"How? You told _me_ to leave!" He yelled back, tears falling down his face now.

"You said we should take a fucking break!"

"I obviously didn't mean for three _years_!"

"So what are you trying to say? You're still in love with me?" She yelled.

"I don't know! Are you still in love with me? Or are you dating Dallas now?!" He yelled back.

She stood there staring at him. "I was trying to leave because that…song came on and I couldn't dance with Dallas to it. It just, it felt so wrong." She told him quietly.

"I tried to dance with that girl to get over whatever I was feeling towards you. That just made me realise I haven't fallen out of love with you Ally. You're unavoidable." She let out a teary sigh.

"Why were you trying to avoid me? I thought you were still mad at me."

"I was trying to avoid you because I didn't know what I was feeling and I didn't wanna face it." He admitted.

"Oh god. What happened to us?" Ally whispered through her tears, looking up at him.

"Did you ever hate me?" He asked nervously.

"Not even close. I never fell out of love with you either." She cried. He let out a sob.

"What about now?" He pleaded, taking her hands in his.

"I don't know Austin. It's been almost three years." She slid her hands out of his. He nodded, tears falling to the ground.

"You know what happened with your toast…it felt like that time with the butterfly song. It felt like we were fifteen again."

"I wish we were fifteen again." She said, her voice cracking. "Maybe things would be different. Maybe we'd do it right."

"Maybe we still have time." He said desperately. He suddenly regretted every life decision he had made for the past three years.

"Did you ever carry on performing?" She asked, sitting down on the ground.

"Not even once. Did you carry on writing?" he returned, joining her.

"Books, not music. I tried to become an author." He smiled softly.

"You'd be good at that." he said, more to himself.

She laughed bitterly, but said nothing. They stared at the stars, there were thousands that night.

"I miss you." His voiced cracked. Her eyes were shiny with more tears.

"I miss you." And he knew she meant it.

"It's getting so late. I think I'm just going to go to bed." She said after a moment of silence. She got up and started to walk away. He was losing her again.

"Are you going to date Dallas?" He couldn't help blurting out, cursing himself in his head straight after he said it. He stood up and she turned around, looking him straight in the eye.

"Dallas and I have a date on Saturday night." She said bluntly, but a little anxiously.

His heart dropped to the bottom of his chest. Shaking his head, he pushed past her and walked back down the stairs angrily, tears rolling down his cheeks. He heard her call his name desperately after him, but he couldn't face her right now. He needed to figure out a way to make her see that they still _fit_. They still have time to fix everything. She could try and dodge it all she wanted.

Their love was unavoidable.

* * *

**Hope you guys enjoyed this chapter! I'm not insanely happy with how it ended. If there is a certain direction you would like to see this story take, please leave suggestions in the reviews. I always wanna write stories you guys enjoy. I have an idea but I'm not reaaallly feeling it right now.**

**REVIEW AND FOLLOW IF YOU WANT TO BE NOTIFIED WHEN I UPDATE**


	3. Early Mornings & Late Nights

**My back's against the wall**

**Oh oh, and I'm feelin the pressure,**

**Yes I'm about to fall.**

**Oh Oh, what I'm feelin, it's torture**

* * *

Austin woke up with a throbbing in his head. Possibly from how much he had drank the night before, or perhaps because Dez was hitting him over the head with a pillow in an attempt to wake him up.

"What? What do you want Dez?" he groaned, not really feeling like getting out of bed. Ever.

After his and Ally's confrontation at the wedding reception, Austin had just gone straight to the bar and drank his feelings away. He didn't know whether Ally had bothered looking for him, he hadn't wanted to see her anyway. He told her he was still _in love _with her. And it hadn't even crossed his mind that she might not say it back because they're _them _and not being together wasn't a possibility. The fact that she just chose Dallas over him as if it was an easy decision was beyond what Austin could comprehend. All through the night Austin's mind kept going back to all those years that he wasted not bothering to contact her. All the years that he thought she hated him, that she never wanted to see him again when in actual fact she had still been in love with him. And now it was too late, she had moved on. Moved on to the last person on earth he would _ever _approve of. The worst part was that Austin knew if he lost her one more time, he might never get her back.

Austin obviously came off upset as Dez crouched down beside the bed and sighed.

"Look man, I know you're all wounded by this 'seeing Ally again' thing. But I did warn you of this. Don't you think it's just too difficult for both of you?" He said cautiously.

"I've lost her Dez. Just when I realise I still love her. I lose her!" Austin angrily muttered into his pillowcase, muffling his words.

"But do you love her?" Dez asked, catching Austin's attention, as he pulled his head up and looked up at him. "I know that seeing her brings back all these memories and you feel like you should obviously love her. But maybe you're just remembering old love? Dwelling on what you used to feel? Feelings don't always last forever, Austin. Especially after three years of no contact…"

Austin sat up in bed and raised his eyebrows. Perhaps Dez was right. Maybe seeing her with Dallas just brought back the memory of when they were seventeen and he _was _dwelling on the feelings he felt back then. Come to think of it, that made an awful lot of sense. He hoped to God that Dez was right in his predictions.

When Austin didn't reply, Dez carried on. "Here's what I think you should do. Go and apologise to Ally, because apparently she got really upset last night, and then meet me downstairs for breakfast! I'm starving and they stop serving hot food at 10!"

Austin chuckled at his friend's constant need for food and nodded. "Yeah, yeah okay. I'll tell her that I over reacted last night, I was just overwhelmed and I wish her luck with Dallas. And that I want to stay friends. Just… friends."

Dez flashed him a supportive smile. "Perfect."

"When did you get so good at this stuff?" Austin teased.

"You know what they call me Austin! The-"

"Love whisperer. Got it." Austin cut in. Dez could be so predictable sometimes. But he was wise.

Accepting the facts, Austin dragged himself out of bed and got ready for the, in all likelihood, very awkward breakfast that was about to follow.

* * *

Ally played about with her bread, ripping it apart and dipping it in jam like she was five years old again. She couldn't help herself from constantly glancing at the door. Waiting for… someone perhaps. She didn't know how it was going to be between her and Austin now. Was he just going to shut her out again, or act cold towards her? Or would he just put on that fake smile she knew so well and pretend everything was fine and normal? Probably the latter. She doubted that he had suddenly grown up overnight and might actually have a proper conversation with her about it. But that being said, they'd probably just end up fighting again. After looking for him for two hours the night previous she had given up and just cried in the bathroom. Pathetic, yes, but she was trying to convince herself that she wasn't still in love with him, and that their relationship had been unhealthy but all of the happy memories she held just completely overtook the memories of their fights and she couldn't accept the fact that she might, just, possibly still be in love with him. But he wasn't right for her, maybe he had been at one point, but not right now. She needed someone less opinionated, less passionate. More sophisticated, and gentle. Dallas was what she needed. Or at least that's what she had told herself, even though being passionate had been one of her absolute favourite things about Austin.

"Hey hey hey, what are you doing, Ally? Your bread is gonna be all over the table at this rate." Dallas' smooth, sarcastic voice snapped Ally out of her thoughts and she swiftly turned her head to face him. She had never gone back to dance with him after she had taken a break, and she thought he may have seen her crying as she had re-entered the hall, but he hadn't said anything in the morning, so neither had she. Smiling, she pushed her plate away and laughed a little too enthusiastically.

"Right, my bad. It's just so nice I wanted it to last longer…" She lied. She hadn't even noticed she was doing it. He laughed softly and winked at her.

"I'll get you another slice, yeah?"

As Dallas got up to head towards the buffet of the hotel they were staying at, Trish reached over the table to Ally and smiled cheekily. She didn't even have to say anything. Ally rolled her eyes.

"This is your love story, Trish, not mine. Zip it." She demanded.

"But you guys are totally-" Trish was cut off by Jace putting his hand over her mouth, silencing her. Trish giggled and poked him.

"Don't gossip honey, you know how Ally can be…" He joked, eyes flashing playfully at Ally. He reminded Ally way too much of Trish herself.

"Speaking of love stories," Ally started, hastily changing the subject. "Are you guys excited for your honeymoon?"

Trish's eyes suddenly lit up with childlike excitement and she started babbling on about everything her and Jace were planning to do on the holiday from the moment they stepped off the aeroplane. At that moment two guys walked into the breakfast room and Ally's eyes automatically averted towards them. Austin and Dez.

Not even looking at her, Austin came and sat down immediately, after asking Dez to grab some food for him. Sitting directly opposite her, he gave her a small, but genuine smile and looked her straight in the eyes for the first time since their argument.

"Hi." He said quietly.

"Hi…" She trailed off. To be honest she hadn't even really expected him to acknowledge her. But he was Austin. He could never really be that cold. The table was silent, Trish had stopped telling her story and was sitting there in anticipation. At that moment Austin just forgot everything he was going to say to her and looked down awkwardly. Luckily, or unluckily in Austin's case, Dallas saved the tension by returning and plonking himself down next to Ally.

"Here you go, Ally-gator, one bread slice and a pot of jam, as requested." He laughed, passing her the food. She blushed and thanked him but immediately looked at Austin. She just couldn't help it.

Austin felt a stab of brief jealously. _Ally-gator. _He did not seriously just call her that. He reluctantly brushed it off and put on a fake smile, forgetting that Ally could still tell the difference.

"You know what…I actually, uh, lost my appetite. And I really have to get home to be honest, got a ton of stuff to do, you know, work tomorrow!" Austin began. Ally stared at him in disbelief. He had _literally _just sat down. She knew it was because of Dallas. Pretty much everyone on the table knew. Turning to Trish and Jace, he continued. "I am so happy for you guys, have a wonderful honeymoon, I love you so much and hope to see you soon. I'm sorry I can't send you off, but definitely send me a postcard, alright?" He gave Trish a hug, fist pumped Jace, got up from his seat and headed towards the door. Dez caught his arm just before he was out of the door.

"What are you doing?" He asked sceptically. "Have you told her?"

"No, I haven't man, obviously not in front of Dallas and everyone!" He returned as if it was the most obvious reason in the entire world. Pulling his arm from Dez's grip, he muttered. "See you at home, dude." And with that, he walked out, feeling her eyes on him the entire time.

* * *

Pulling the key out of the lock, Ally shut her apartment door and leant against it, sighing loudly. After finishing breakfast, she had gone up to help Trish pack her suitcases (yes, she had multiple) and driven the happy couple to the airport to see them off. Time during which Trish had asked what the deal was with Austin, and Ally had reluctantly told her all about the fight they had on the roof at the wedding and how Dallas had asked her out. Trish sighed and said it was just like they were all teenagers again, to which Ally laughed and agreed. She had told Trish not to worry about it and that she will figure it out 'like an easy math problem.' Trish had just chuckled and given her a hug. Although, after the teary goodbyes at the airport and just before Trish was about to walk through the gate to board the plane she had said- "Ally, all I'm going to say is… just please don't let him go completely. I would honestly hate to see you go through that again. With you and Austin, it's never really off the table. Don't shut him out."

Ally knew she was right, but she felt his view of things might be a little different, seeing as all he had said to her since their fight was the word 'Hi'. Just before they had left for the airport Ally had quickly ran up to Austin's hotel room, but as she expected, he and Dez had already left. Disappointed, as she had hoped to get a chance to talk to him alone after breakfast, Ally had just pushed him out of her mind and walked away. A part of her was glad that he hadn't been there, because she hadn't planned a single word of what she was going to tell him. Now she faced her first night of living alone in her and Trish's apartment, and she had never wanted someone to talk to more. She instantly shut the door of Trish's room, not wanting to look at the emptiness it held. Trudging into her kitchen, she pulled a tub of fruity mint swirl out of the freezer and plumped herself down on the couch in the living room, switching her laptop on. Seeing Skype automatically load up, her cursor automatically moved towards the name Trish De La Rosa. Taking a second thought, she decided she didn't want to completely interrupt their honeymoon on the first night so she didn't click it. Trish didn't want to hear Ally talk about her feelings, she's supposed to be focusing _her_ feelings on her new husband. Sighing dejectedly, Ally closed her eyes and leaned back on the couch. Her body jolted awake as the sound of an incoming call came through her laptop speakers. Reading the name of the caller, Ally let out a pleased smile and accepted it.

"Hello Ally!" a familiar voice addressed her excitedly as soon as she turned on her webcam. Laughing towards the red-headed image in front of her she replied.

"What's up Dez? I see you called me." She questioned.

"I did! Just wondering if you wanted to talk. I'm seriously bored after that massive wedding."

"I know the feeling. It was pretty extravagant, right?" Dez laughed at that.

"I see right through your hints Ally… The wedding was amazingly planned, thanks to you. Job well done, I say! Especially the Neon Trees." He reassured her, causing her to smile widely and blush a little.

"Aw thanks Dez. I worked pretty hard on it." Dez gave her a thumbs up through the screen but did not reply, so she continued. "What are you up to, besides talking to me?"

"Mmm, pretty much nothing. We just finished eating dinner a minute ago. And then I called you." Ally almost froze on the mention of 'we'.

"You and Austin?" She inquired softly. Dez nodded and shoved a cookie into his mouth, seeing Austin enter the room in the corner of his eye.

"Yeah, I tried to get him to play video games with me a second ago but he said he didn't feel like it. Probably too scared I'll beat him." Dez joked. Ally heard a muffled voice from off camera.

"What? No… I was just tired. It is like 11:45 Dez." Dez looked off screen and shrugged, scoffing at the voice Ally recognised as Austin. "Who are you talking-" Austin started before walking into Ally's view and catching sight of her face on the screen, cutting off his sentence. She froze in her spot and wanted to be cold to him, but her eyes softened at the sight of him in his pyjamas with his messy hair and eating an apple.

"Hey, Austin." She said in the cheeriest voice she could manage.

"Oh… hey Ally." He replied softly, before beginning to look down and walk away, his heartbeat rising. As she watched him walk out of the shot she just couldn't stop herself.

"Can- can I talk to you?" She blurted. Dez chipped in straight away.

"Yeah, actually I have to go and unpack the rest of my stuff anyways. See you later Ally." Dez waved, Ally gave him a bright smile and with that he stood up from the chair and walked away. Austin swallowed and slowly walked up towards the camera to sit down in front of the laptop. She even looked cute all pixelated.

"What's up Ally?" He said nervously. She raised her eyebrows.

"What do you think is up?" Ally replied in a soft tone. She wasn't about to have a fight again, especially through a laptop screen. Austin sighed knowingly.

"Look, Ally I honestly did want to talk to you this morning, it's just when I walked into the room and everyone was there… Dallas was there… I just freaked out a little, I guess." He said in one breath, avoiding her eye contact.

"I guess." She repeated, looking down and plunging her spoon into the tub on her lap. He couldn't stifle the half smile that automatically appeared on his face.

"Fruity mint swirl?" He knew. She nodded and looked down chuckling softly. After a few moments of silence, he just decided to say it. "I'm sorry about what I said at the wedding. I didn't really mean it, I was just really overwhelmed about… seeing you again." Assuming he was referring to his confession of love to her, a tiny wave of disappointment hit Ally, however it was followed by relief at the fact he was finally addressing his feelings.

"I'm sorry too. But…" Her voice caught in her throat and she couldn't get the next part out without whispering it. "I just don't wanna…lose you." She was met with silence while Austin's eyes looked straight into the camera.

"Friends?" He asked her. She sighed.

"I hope so." She said more to herself, and gave him a small smile directly. He opened his mouth to say more but she cut him off. "Look, I'm gonna go. I'm more tired than a goldfish who just swam the pacific." Austin chuckled at her comparison.

"A goldfish swam the pacific? When?" He said, the sarcasm subtle. She smiled at her lap and ended the call, surprising him. When he realised she had actually gone, he placed the laptop screen down in frustration and defeat. There was so, so much more he had planned to say to her. All he managed to achieve was saying he was sorry about the fight and the word friends. Idiot. Dropping his head onto the top of the laptop, he released a long sigh. It was starting to dawn on him that this friend thing might be a little harder than he anticipated.

Ally shut down her laptop and sat on the couch aimlessly. She wasn't sure why she had ended the call so abruptly, she just felt so many memories of their teenage friendship fly back to her and she wasn't quite ready to face them yet. She looked at her watch, it was 12:07. She was awake into the next day, which Ally did not achieve very regularly. While getting up and walking towards her bedroom, it hit her. If it was technically the next day, it was Saturday.

Date with Dallas day.

* * *

**There was chapter 3! I hope it was enjoyable to read. I know not that much happened in this chapter but don't worry, it's definitely coming! The story is about to get pretty exciting in the next couple of chapters, promise!**

**I am sorry it took so long to write this chapter I was doing my exams but they are finished now and I am ****_free_**** for summer so I will be updating weekly and if not at least fortnightly.**

**Please follow the story if you want to be updated when I post the next chapter and REVIEW! :D**


End file.
